Statistics Estonia is Looking For Volunteers to Participate in a Mobile Positioning Trial Study

Statistics Estonia, the University of Tartu Department of Geography and Positium LBS are organising a trial study on mobile positioning with the aim to find out whether mobile positioning can help to determine the place of residence of a person.

“Statistics Estonia wants to investigate the potential of using big data for producing official statistics, but in order to make conclusions, a necessary amount of data is required,”

explained Kaja Sõstra, Head of the Methodology and Analysis Department of Statistics Estonia.

“With the trial study we identify whether mobile positioning data are helpful, if for example, the data on a person’s place of residence are not correct in databases or registers and need to be specified for the purpose of producing statistics,”

said Ms Sõstra.

“For this survey to be successful, we need 1,000 volunteers by 22 June who would agree that their mobile phone call locations of the previous 12 months are analysed. The mobile telecommunication operator does not submit call content for the analysis,”

she explained.

The study entails analysing the distance of the anchor point calculated based on the person’s mobile positioning data and the residence obtained in the registers, and developing a model for choosing the most probable residence. In order to develop the model, the data of the volunteers are divided into two parts: the first part is used to develop the model and the second part to test the model. The results are compared to the actual residences that people were asked about.

“We are looking for interested participants who wish to contribute to the development of an innovative methodology for future statistics,”

said Ms Sõstra.

In order to participate in the mobile positioning trial study, an agreement form should be completed and signed by 22 June. The form and additional information on the study can be found on the website of Statistics Estonia (in Estonian).

Winners of an iPhone and ten power banks will be drawn from all the survey participants.

Statistics Estonia will publish the results of the study at the end of the year.